“[Experimental archeologists] go beyond the search for artifacts. They reproduce artifacts the way they were made at the time in order to better understand the techniques of the people who made and used them.”

— Martin Lominy, L’archéologie expérimentale, Le Journal de Montréal, June 8, 2024 [our translation] [www.journaldemontreal.com/2024/06/08/des-archeologues-ont-fait-des-decouvertes-fascinantes-en-reconstituant--une-pirogue-prehistorique-qui-a-deja-navigue-au-quebec]

Sonic archeology within an introspective microcosm of undeniable artifacts. Objets speak to us, and so does our environment’s vitality through the noise it makes, diegetic sounds (sounds that are part of immediate surroundings) and the wakes they leave. The artifacts that are buried in our thoughts are even more proofs of our existence and degeneration. Paired with extradiegetic soundscapes (sonic add-ons that amplify intended effects), diegetic sounds are supported by the power of elements embedded in the structure of works. These are real, organic sounds that have been mixed with manufactured sounds (i.e. synthetic sounds) to provide more texture and contrast.

For Denis Villeneuve’s 2021 movie Dune, Mark Mangini called on musique concrète techniques to design the sound effects instead of using today’s standard, sound synthesis. This lent extra credibility and depth to the visuals.

In this journey, musical archeology is used to locate settings, movements, memories, objects, and stories, but also the complex mental burden that weighs us down throughout our existence and ends up destroying us by making us forget our own instincts.

In my electroacoustic music, I use the term “cinemasonics” (“cinémasonie” in French) for sounds that outdo visuals through contemplative, spatial and occasionally subjective immersion. I also use it for sequences of overlapping audio segments, bold multitimbral and multitrack polyphonies akin to hyperlink cinema.

This expression figuratively refers to a type of film where the destinies of a large number of characters crisscross. It is reminiscent of choral music through the contrapuntal quality of timbres. The structure was assembled from musical improvisations that were later edited and treated into a form of musical dramaturgy applied to the analysis and understanding of human behaviour (psychology).

Everything takes place in a space with topography, instinct, and a fixed final shape that perfectly translates my ideas. The ever-evolving artifacts bring to mind my sensory world through impressions, expressions, tributes, and a few fossilized sounds and arguments. An archeologic incursion in my thought akin to introspection, a journey to the centre of the brain, however complex it may be.

— Roxanne Turcotte [English translation: François Couture, iv-26]

This album is a tribute to Serge Arcuri (1954-2024), Chantal Dumas (1959-2026), and my mentors (some of whom have left us): Maurice Blouin, Marcelle Deschênes, Francis Dhomont (1926-2023), José Evangelista (1943-2023), Serge Garant (1929-1986), and Louise Gariépy (1945-2026).

— Roxanne Turcotte [English translation: François Couture, v-26]